Carolinas Coast is an experimental site that links observations and forecasts from a variety of data providers. Some data may be periodically unreliable. For specific data limitations, please use the help menu above. Also pay attention to time stamps on real-time observations. For further information please contact the webmaster.

The recent and ongoing development of regional and subregional "coastal ocean observing systems" under the national Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) initiative (www.ocean.us) is increasing meteorological and oceanographic data availability. Currently, region-specific information on marine and coastal conditions is collected by, stored, and made available from a wide range of government and academic institutions. A need exists for improved, coordinated delivery of information to a broad user community. One of the most efficient ways for coastal ocean observing systems to make marine information available to the public is through a partnership with local NOAA National Weather Service Weather Forecast Offices (WFOs), since targeted audiences already rely on these offices for marine observations and forecast needs.

This website is being established through a partnership between the Carolinas Coastal Ocean Observing and Prediction System (Caro-COOPS), the Coastal Ocean Research and Monitoring Program (CORMP), the Southeast Atlantic Coastal Ocean Observing System (SEACOOS), and NOAA's Weather Forecast Offices in Wilmington NC and Charleston SC (NWS-ILM and NWS-CHS). NWS-ILM is responsible for the coastal region extending from Surf City in North Carolina to South Santee River in South Carolina, and extending to 40 nautical miles offshore. NWS-CHS is responsible for the coastal region extending from South Santee River into Georgia, and extending out to 40 nautical miles offshore of South Carolina. The Carolinas Coast website, upon completion, is meant to serve as the new template for the NWS-ILM and NWS-CHS "Marine" webpages.

The observed temperature in degrees Fahrenheit valid at the indicated hour.
from NOAA

The weight of air surrounding an object. A change in pressure is caused by changes in air density, and air density is related to temperature. Warm air is less dense than cooler air because the gas molecules in warm air have a greater velocity and are farther apart than in cooler air.
from NOAA

The pressure exerted by the earth's atmosphere at any given point, determined by taking the product of the gravitational acceleration at the point and the mass of the unit area column of air above the point.
from NOAA

QuikSCAT is the name of a NASA satellite which has a SeaWinds scatterometer that measures both the speed and direction of winds near the ocean surface. A scatterometer is a microwave radar sensor used to measure the roughness of the sea surface through the strength of the backscatter signal. The high radio frequency sent to the Earth's surface from the satellite hits the ocean surface and is scattered back to the satellite's antenna. A rough ocean produces a stronger signal than a smooth ocean.
from SEACOOS

Location and intensity of precipitation valid at the indicated time. The higher values on the reflectivity scale typically represent a greater intensity of precipitation. The "dB" in the dBz scale is logarithmic and has no numerical value, but is used only to express a ratio. The "z" is the ratio of the density of water drops (measured in millimeters, raised to the 6th power) in each cubic meter (mm^6/m^3). When the "z" is large (many drops in a cubic meter), the reflected power is large. A small "z" means little returned energy. The scale of dBZ values is also related to the intensity of rainfall. Typically, light rain is occurring when the dBZ value reaches 20. The higher the dBZ, the stronger the rainrate.
from NOAA

In oceanography, conductivity is measured and converted to salinity by a known functional relationship between the measured electrical conductivity of seawater temperature and pressure.
from NOAA

The temperature of the very surface of the ocean as measured from satellites or the temperature just below the ocean surface as measured from ocean buoys or other platforms.
from SEACOOS

The observed surface water temperature in degrees Fahrenheit valid at the indicated hour.

A snapshot of the observed wind direction valid for the indicated hour, using 36 points of a compass.
from NOAA

A sudden, brief increase in speed of the wind. According to U.S. weather observing practice, gusts are reported when the peak wind speed reaches at least 16 knots and the variation in wind speed between the peaks and lulls is at least 9 knots. The duration of a gust is usually less than 20 seconds.
from NOAA

A snapshot of the observed sustained wind speed (in knots) valid for the indicated hour.
from NOAA